Lifetime exposure to traumatic events among a sample of city bus drivers

Lifetime exposure to traumatic events was assessed retrospectively among a representative sample of city bus drivers (228 men and 54 women) from Montreal, Canada. Among them, 68.1% reported at least one exposure to a traumatic event of any type. Among the 68% exposed, 70.4% reported multiple traumatic exposures (M=2.6, SD=1.67), with ratings ranging from 0 to 12. This report underlines the fact that the prevalence of traumatic events is not yet well known. Epidemiological research should devote more effort to assess fully the lifetime prevalence of traumatic events and not only cases of PTSD.